Prosecutor’s office in Barcelona demanded more than eight years in prison and a fine of around 24 million euros ($24.5 million) for Colombian star Shakira, accused of embezzling the Spanish treasury of 14.5 million euros between 2012 and 2014.
The harsh sentences document was released this Friday by the Barcelona provincial prosecutor’s office after the singer, who pleads not guilty, on Wednesday reneged on an agreement with prosecutors and said she was ready to stand trial.
Now Court of Barcelona must decide whether to finally open an oral trial of the 45-year-old artist, who until the last moment could reach an agreement with the prosecutor’s office.
However, at the moment, the differences between the parties are almost total. In its statement, the prosecution accuses Shakira in that he used a “corporate network” set up a few years ago to avoid paying taxes in Spain in 2012, 2013 and 2014, despite the fact that he already lived in the country for more than 183 days a year, as required by law.
For this reason, he asks for the singer to be sentenced to more than eight years in prison and to pay a fine of almost 24 million euros.
The letter arrived two days after the singer’s lawyers stated that they had canceled the contract with the prosecutor’s office and intended to go to court.
“With full conviction of her innocence (…) Shakira does not accept the agreement” with the prosecutor’s office and “decides to continue” the process, her legal representatives said in a statement in Barcelona, where the singer lives, who showed herself confident “that justice will prove him right “.
Condemning the “complete violation of their rights”, Shakira said in a statement that “the prosecution tried to recover money earned in [sus] international tours and Voice“, an American television program in which she was a judge, during a period when “she was not yet a resident of Spain”.
Shakira releases
Interpreter Waka Waka or The hips don’t lie He recalled that he paid 17.2 million euros ($17.4 million) that the Treasury demanded, and therefore believes that “there is no outstanding debt to the Treasury.”
The artist has always stated that she acted according to the criteria and clear recommendations of her advisers.
However, according to the prosecution, Shakira I lived in Spain since at least the 2012 financial year, shortly after his relationship with the FC Barcelona footballer became known. Gerard Piquébut until 2015 kept his tax residence in the Bahamas, considered a tax haven.
The couple, who have two children, announced their divorce last June.
The star pleaded guilty in the case in June 2019 in front of a court on the outskirts of Barcelona, where she dodged dozens of waiting journalists, photographers and TV cameras by driving in and out through an attached garage where she rented a parking space.
Last May, a court in Barcelona rejected an appeal filed by Isabelle Mebarac Ripoll, the full name of the artist, who requested that the investigation be archived.
Shakira appeared in the so-called Pandora Papers, a vast investigation into millions of leaked documents released in 2021 by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists that indicated that hundreds of individuals had resorted to tax havens, largely to evade the treasury. (AFP)
Source: RPP
I’m Liza Grey, an experienced news writer and author at the Buna Times. I specialize in writing about economic issues, with a focus on uncovering stories that have a positive impact on society. With over seven years of experience in the news industry, I am highly knowledgeable about current events and the ways in which they affect our daily lives.